UFC flyweights at a glance: UFC 197 edition

HIGHLIGHTS

Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson defends championship

Challenger Henry Cejudo won Olympic wrestling gold in 2008

Demetrious Johnson hasn’t been shy about his pursuit of the UFC record books.

The flyweight champion, who is on the short list of top pound-for-pound fighters in the world, wants to surpass former middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva’s mark of 10 successful title defenses. Entering his UFC 197 co-main event showdown with unbeaten challenger Henry Cejudo, Mighty Mouse has defended his title seven consecutive times.

The way things are going, Johnson might get there within a year. But in the world of MMA, anything can happen in the cage.

Read on for more on the finest fighters in the UFC’s 125-pound division. For convenience, they have been separated into descending tiers.

Champion

Demetrious Johnson (23-2-1, 11-1-1 UFC)

Mighty Mouse was an accomplished bantamweight before the UFC added the 125-pound division four years ago. In his last fight at 135, he lost a decision to 135-pound champion Dominick Cruz.

Johnson hasn’t lost since, laying waste to the elite of the division. He has two wins over Joseph Benavidez, two more over John Dodson, plus victories against Kyoji Horiguchi, John Moraga, Ali Bagautinov and Ian McCall. Most of the top fighters he hasn’t faced tend to lose to the guys he already has defeated. Mighty Mouse is in a league of his own.

True Contenders

Joseph Benavidez (24-4, 11-2)

Make that contender, singular. With Dodson’s return to bantamweight, Benavidez is in a tier all his own, for better or worse.

In his 28-fight career, only two men have beaten Benavidez: Johnson and Cruz. At 125 pounds, he can boast of wins over Moraga, Jussier Formiga, Bagautinov, McCall, Zach Makovsky and Dustin Ortiz. That resume is nearly as impressive as Johnson’s.

Benavidez may just be the greatest UFC fighter to never win the title, a bittersweet distinction to be sure.

Upper Echelon

Cejudo’s MMA resume isn’t the most stacked. The 29-year-old’s only win over a fighter mentioned in this piece is against Formiga, via split decision in November. That’s a nice feather, but his status as the youngest-ever U.S. Olympic gold medalist in wrestling is his greatest feat to date.

Horiguchi, like Cejudo, has youth on his side. He’s only 25, so it’s likely the hard-hitting Japanese fighter will one day work his way back to a second title shot.

The aforementioned Formiga and Moraga are elite gatekeepers. Both are tough outs that separate the men from the boys at 125.

Muddled Middle

Bagautinov has lost two in a row, but they were to Johnson and Benavidez. His win over current bantamweight John Lineker is a solid accomplishment, but the rest of his ledger is less impressive.

McCall was considered the top flyweight in the world before the UFC conglomerated the division. Uncle Creepy, as he is known, has struggled since a draw against Johnson in the inaugural flyweight tournament semifinals. He lost his last bout against an overweight Lineker in January 2015.

Reis impressed in a decision victory against Ortiz in January, but neither looks like a candidate to one day dethrone Johnson.

Smolka, on the other hand, has could be going places. At just 24 years old, the well-rounded Hawaiian may be less than a year away from a title shot if he can pick up a win over a top 10 opponent.

Scott, the Sports Editor at amNewYork, also covers video games and has been with the team since 2012. He began his career in 2006 with the Morristown (N.J.) Daily Record and also worked at the New Jersey Herald.